Pros & cons

What's good?

What's not so good?

Earn up to 2 Qantas points per $1 spent on Qantas flights, goods, and services.

Good rewards earn rate: 1 pt per $1 spent.

Pay no annual card fee.

Global card support.

Purchase and refund protection.

No points capping.

No signup bonus points.

1% fee on balance transfers.

High 20.74% p.a. interest rate on purchases.

Longer interest free periods are available than 'Up to 44 days on purchases’.

Our review

Our review of the Qantas American Express Discovery Credit CardReviewed by Yvonne Taylor

If you want a no-fuss, economical credit card that earns Qantas Frequent Flyer points at an acceptable rate, the Qantas American Express Discovery Credit Card might have the appropriate combination of features for your situation. There aren’t many distracting bells and whistles to get your head around – basically just QFF points, a modicum of insurance cover and a moderate balance transfer offer.

No choices, but no complications

Some people like choices, others prefer to keep it simple. The name of this card spells out what you’ll get: an Amex card (which can be a problem in that some merchants will decline to accept it or add a surcharge) and Qantas points. No need to decide what kind of card or what kind of rewards you want. Look elsewhere if QFF points have no appeal or if you don’t have another card to fall back on when Amex is declined.

No annual fee, ever

Credit card holders can usually either earn rewards points, or do without them and avoid an annual fee, so it’s quite unusual to encounter a card which offers reward points for spending without a hefty yearly charge attached. But with this card you get points without paying, and the fee-free situation extends to up to four additional cards. This means you can get family members to help you accrue points as long as you trust them with your credit.

Good points earnings rate

Not only do you get points without paying a fee, at 1 pt per $1 spent (except for payments to government bodies, which earn only 0.5 pts per $1 spent) it’s far more than a token earning rate. In fact it’s just as good a rate as some competing cards which have annual fees of $150 to $350.

There’s no cap on the number of points you can earn per month, and you even get two points per dollar for buying Qantas products, such as Qantas flights and QFF and Qantas Club membership (but excluding Jetstar flights and Qantas holidays).

Best ways to spend Qantas points

Although Qantas has the usual merchandise catalogue, plus gift card and travel redemptions, there’s no doubt that the best value for your points comes from redeeming them for flights and upgrades with Qantas and its partner airlines.

For 8,000 QFF points plus $30 in fees and taxes you can book an economy flight between Sydney and Melbourne. 18,000 points plus $38 in fees and taxes will fly you from Adelaide to Perth. For a longer-term goal of a flight to Europe you will need 60,000 points.

Average balance transfer offer

In a market which has cards offering zero-interest balance transfers for up to 24 months, this card’s 12 months at 0% p.a., plus a credit establishment fee of 1% of the transferred balance, is not particularly inspiring. Unpaid balances at the end of the promotional period revert to the standard interest rate of 20.74%. So no one is going to choose this card for the balance transfer component alone, but it is one more benefit that might tip the balance, especially keeping in mind that there is no annual fee.

Not the best in terms of interest-free days

Given that up to 55 interest-free days on purchases is pretty common, the Amex Discovery card’s Up to 44 days on purchases seems a little stingy. But in reality the difference is not great. Even if your average monthly purchases on the card were as much as $5,000, that means you’d forego having that sum in your bank deposit account for 11 days each month (when compared with a 55-day card). Your bank deposit account is probably currently earning a paltry interest rate of around 3% p.a., which means that the 11-day shortfall will cost you $5,000 × 3% x 11/365 × 12 (months) = $54 a year. For most people that’s not a significant amount, but it’s just one more thing to think about.

It also pays to be aware that, as long as you have an unpaid balance transfer on your account, your interest-free days will be precisely zero. That means that any purchase you make with the card will begin to accrue interest as soon as it’s billed. If you’re going to run a balance transfer on this card, you’d be better off using another card for your purchases.

A little insurance has to go a long way

This is the Amex version of a budget card, so there are no wonderful trimmings like airport lounge passes and overseas travel insurance. But since purchasing is the main intent of credit cards, your purchases will still be protected by insurance, in two ways.

Firstly, any items bought using the card will be automatically repaired or replaced if they are damaged or stolen within 90 days of purchase. There’s a maximum claim of $2,000 per event, or $10,000 or 70% of credit limit in any one year.

Secondly, if a retailer refuses to give you a refund for an unused item you purchased with the card, Amex will let you return it to them instead and will give you a refund. Once again there’s a 90-day window to claim, and the limits are $500 per item and $2,000 per year.

This card is aimed at . . .

. . . someone who wants to earn QFF points at a healthy rate without paying for the privilege or getting entangled in a complex proprietary rewards program points transfer system. If you’re not looking for a host of built-in freebies (for which you will ultimately pay, one way or another) and can cope with the sometimes patchy acceptance of Amex cards, you may want to discover more about the Qantas American Express Discovery Credit Card.

User reviews

4.6 out of 5.0 based on 7 reviews100% of reviewers would recommend this card

Rates and fees

Rewards

Customer service

Convenience

Trust

Reviews from users

Excellent card with no fees

Reviewed and recommended by Vivian on 21 Sep 2016

An excellent card, easy to apply for an obtain, accepted everywhere with absolutely no fees and charges. There’s an added perk of 0.5 points per dollar in Qantas Frequent Flyer points.

It’s a very good card for daily use as well as when travelling domestically and internationally. I would highly recommend this card as it has a substantial credit limit.

Awesome rewards, no fees

Reviewed and recommended by Brad on 08 Dec 2016

It’s a great card with no annual fees. You get a bunch of cashback offers almost monthly, with great savings at a variety of retailers, and Qantas Frequent Flyer points with every purchase.

Whenever I’ve had to deal with customer service, the experience has been very impressive — can’t complain at all. If you haven’t already applied, do yourself a favour because there is no reason not to get this card.

Rewards card with no fee, but not widely accepted

Reviewed and recommended by Jumbo on 25 Sep 2016

I am very pleased with the card itself. There’s absolutely no annual fee, and upon the first $300 and Qantas purchase, you get 5000 and 2500 extra points.

Although the earning rate is only 1 point per dollar, not as high as other AmEx cards, I don’t have too much complaint about that.

The only drawback is that the AmEx card is not that widely accepted, and many merchants charge a surcharge for it. So I tend to use this card along with a Visa/MasterCard.

Great rewards and no fees

Reviewed and recommended by Grant on 02 Jul 2016

This is a great card with a decent rewards program that links with my Qantas Frequent Flyer account. Every now and then you get great offers on your card to use in a variety stores. I like the Small Business Saturday promotions they have, supporting and encouraging shopping at small businesses. The best thing is that this card costs nothing and a supplementary card is also free.

Be treated as a VIP with American Express

Reviewed and recommended by Fiona on 30 Aug 2016

With the Qantas American Express Discovery Credit Card I’ve had exclusive access to lounges and bars before shows or during varying entertainment events, by showing my American Express card.

Also with pre-registration of my details and my card details with designated companies, I have access to redeeming credit-back offers.

All enquiries at American Express are dealt with very professionally. I’m always treated like a VIP with American Express.

Fantastic for quickly increasing air miles

Reviewed and recommended by Teneka on 05 Dec 2016

It’s a great card because you can use it at nearly all shopping outlets. PayWave is included. It’s fantastic for quickly increasing the air miles.

The cost can be high, but you pay for the good customer service and peace of mind of using a well-known and easy-to-deal-with brand. I would easily recommend it as an entry-level point builder.

No annual fee and great rewards

Reviewed and recommended by Thomas on 22 Sep 2016

This card has no annual fee and great rewards. It has been around for ages.

Although it’s not accepted too widely, I do get by. It would be great if vendors stopped charging their ridiculous fees, but I make sure I let them know my opinion and walk out without buying. AmEx needs to do something about them.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed about credit cards are the reviewer's alone, and do not reflect the views of Credit Card Compare or the credit card issuer. Reviews have not been approved or otherwise endorsed by Credit Card Compare.

The basics

About this card

Card setup‌

Single

Card tier‌

Standard

Card type‌

American Express

Card use‌

Personal

Credit rating‌

No bad credit history

Gambling transactions allowed‌

No

Joint application‌

N/A

Minimum age‌

18 years old

Minimum income‌

$35,000

Minimum income for pensioners‌

N/A

Pensioners‌

N/A

Rewards program‌

Qantas Frequent Flyer

Temporary residents‌

Business Long Stay Visa (subclass 457)

Cardholders

Additional cardholders‌

4

Additional card fee‌

$0 p.a.

Credit limits

Minimum credit limit‌

$2,000

Maximum credit limit‌

$100,000

Repayments

Interest charged from‌

Statement date

Interest free period‌

Up to 44 days on purchases

Minimum repayment‌

2.5%

Balance transfers

The offer

Interest rate‌

Period‌

Fee‌

Limit‌

Revert rate‌

Balance transfers

0% p.a.

12 months

1%

$10,000 or 70% of credit limit

20.74% p.a.

Balance transfers to this card

Balance transfer earns rewards‌

No

Balance transfer fee payment due‌

First statement

Balance transfer from personal loan‌

No

Balance transfer processing time‌

10 - 14 days

Interest free days with unpaid balance‌

0 days

Maximum balance transfer‌

$10,000 or 70% of credit limit

Available to existing customers‌

No

Banks you can't balance transfer from

You can't balance transfer to the Qantas American Express Discovery Credit Card at the promotional balance transfer rate from:

Disclaimer: Does not include taxes, fees, or charges. Accurate as of 25th January 2016.

Rewards program basics

First purchase bonus‌

N/A

Reward points expiry‌

Never as long as you keep your account active

Rewards program‌

Qantas Frequent Flyer

Sign up bonus‌

N/A

Spend required for bonus points‌

N/A

Earning points with this card

Frequent flyer points‌

1 pt per $1 spent

Overseas earn rate‌

Same as standard earn rate

Points cap per month‌

Unlimited

Points cap per year‌

Unlimited

Points earned on ATO payments‌

0.5 pts per $1 spent

Reward points‌

1 pt per $1 spent

Additional benefits

Airport lounge access‌

No

Complimentary flight voucher‌

No

Concierge service‌

No

Benefits

This card comes with benefits worth an estimated $60

Shopping

Estimated value

Purchase protection

Valuation based on the assumption of making a $200 claim once every 5 years. There is no retail market for this type of insurance, so no premium saving.

$40

Refund cover if retailer refuses return

Most major retailers have 100% guaranteed returns, but not all do. Valuation assumes making a $100 claim once every 5 years.

$20

Total estimated value

$60

Annual fee

$0

Net customer value

$60

Disclaimer: Details of who, what, and where coverage applies to, as well as its duration and any coverage limitations will be listed in the credit card insurance product disclosure statement (PDS) on the card issuer's website. The names/labels of complimentary insurance products may differ from one issuer to another. Terms and conditions apply. Always check the insurance PDS when considering a financial product. Accurate as of 31st October 2015.

Minimum criteria for this card

What you need before applying

Be over 18 years old

You are a resident or citizen of Australia

Earn a regular income of more than $35,000 per year

Have no history of bad credit

You have your personal details ready to complete the online application

Have not applied for multiple credit cards recently

Disclaimer: The minimum criteria pointers are intended only to be a guide. Your application may still be rejected by the bank even if you can answer 'Yes' to all the minimum criteria. The final decision regarding your application is up to the bank.